


Secret Fairy Tail

by anellope



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Break Up, Crying, Elf/Human Relationship(s), Elves, F/M, Growing Old, Human, Men Crying, Old Age, Older Characters, Post-Break Up, Religion, Reunions, Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2020-04-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:07:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23913553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anellope/pseuds/anellope
Summary: "I would have married you if I could, you know that, right?""Why lie to me after so long, Ben?"
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh
Kudos: 3





	Secret Fairy Tail

"I would have married you if I could, you know that, right?"

He looked at her face, watching her hair, red and curly behind her ears, and also her pink lips, now rippling in an angry grimace, which, in the end, suited her a little. She would have been exactly like the day he last saw her if it wasn't for those angry eyes, for that hateful expression. Beverly fell silent, lowering her face to her feet, hugging her own shoulders in an attempt of comfort; Ben desired with all of himself to be able to do something, anything. But he couldn’t, not after everything he had done.

"Why lie to me after so long, Ben?"

The man let a desperate squeak escape from his throat, a sign that he had just swallowed a loud sob. He had always been inclined to cry when it came to her.

"I'm not lying Beverly, you can't... I couldn’t ruin your life by tying you to me, do you understand? You would have met only misfortune and pain if you had followed me!"

"I would have also met love," she objected, looking up at him, furious, hurt, lost, a perfect twin of Ben's gaze, the one he had worn from over half a century. “I would have met the happiness of having a life with the most important person in my existence, the happiness of creating a family with him, of raising a child, of being happy! Didn't you think about that?  Wouldn’t it be worth it?"

"It would have been wonderful," he agreed, wiping his tears with the sleeve of his robe.

"But look at me, Bev," he continued, looking at her sadly, his eyes on her shining ones, her red and still young cheeks streaked with tears. Everything about her had always been red, for Ben it had always been attributable only to her, as if it belonged to nobody but Beverly by right. And maybe it was just like that. Red for love, for beauty, for a timeless youthful.

"I'm old now, I will die soon and when we met I was little more than a child. My life, the life of humans, is much faster than yours, your people’s. You're a queen, Bev, you'll live another 300 years before you’ll fade away, how could I let you fell in love with something I’ll rob you of right away?"

Initially Beverly didn't answer, she raised her watery eyes to the trees of the forest, away from the figure of Ben, of a very elderly Ben who was very different from the young man she had fallen in love with, but at the same time profoundly the same, with the same heart, the same eyes, the same stubbornness and desire to sacrifice himself for the happiness of others, or for the right thing. Foolish humans, foolish lover man.

Perhaps Beverly hated him, he probably hated him more than anything else for having abandoned her that night, for running away from her bed without a greeting, a word and agreeing to meet her only after 50 endless years of unfortunate sorrow.

"Your hair is winter fire, January embers," she recited, while new tears formed at the corners of the eyes of them both. She brought a hand to her neck, causing an old and roughly engraved stone pendant came out of her dress, Ben recognized it immediately.

"You've been keeping it all this time." he murmured, unable to hide a small soft smile, while the memories of the night he had secretly delivered it cut off the surface, for the first time in a long time like a happy thought instead of undergoing nightmares and regrets.

It was his greatest secret, the love he felt for the princess of the kingdom that had welcomed him, the strong but peaceful kingdom of the elves, a secret he had shared with her when Beverly discovered who had given her such beautiful, genuine words. A secret feeling turned into a secret relationship, a secret love, long enough to be unreplaceable, a secret too big and too short for both, which had brought a void in the hearts of the two lovers who never should have been together.

That the Stars or Something had decided they could not have been together.

Ben had often wondered if there really was something superior to guide them, as the elves’ creed played maybe: Pennywise and Maturin, the two demons who had fun with the life of the terrestrial, Pace and Chaos in an infinite game of chess, where they were nothing but insignificant pawns for Someone’s amusement.

It was easier to believe this, less difficult than facing the possibility of having condemned himself and the love of his life to an existence of grief. Ben had never been good at dealing with his own fears, the cowardly man he had always been.

"Obviously it was always with me, I felt protected in this way, beloved, safe." Beverly stated, pointing again her very green eyes, like the forest that surrounded them, towards him, smacking a painful arrow against him with the only aid of her gaze. "It made me believe that you would come back to me, that I had not trusted a person who had preferred to abandon me."

"I loved you Beverly, you were the love of my life, you are the love of my life and you’ll always be. I shouldn't have given you anything but happiness, it was all I felt it mattered." He knew it was time to leave, that he was no longer welcome in those lands, that there was nothing else they could say, he could do.

"You should have stayed with me."

Beverly wasn't looking at him. Ben sighed, distraught.

"I know, I'm sorry." And that was the end of it all, forever.

When she turned around, he was already gone. She reprimed a load and heavy sob, while her body seemed unable to work, to let her do something, anything. She sighed, suffering the lack of air in her lungs, only a sentence in her mouth.

" _ My heart burns there too. _ "


End file.
